Camp Security for Preppers

After TEOTWAWKI, you
may find yourself bugging out on foot for an extended
period. Setting up camp is about more than pitching a
tent and starting a campfire. In a post collapse world,
camp security for preppers requires you to not
only deter wild animals, but also marauders. Regardless
of how elaborate your camp is, camp security is a must.

It might be a sleeping bag in a
lean-to with a small warming
fire at the entrance. It could
be a wall tent with five or six
hunters high in the backcountry.
It might be a recreational
vehicle parked at the end of a
road, a hiker's bivouac on the
shore of an alpine lake, or a
place to run to in the event of
a natural disaster or unrest in
the big city. Whatever the
reason for the camp, chances are
the camper or campers will have
to leave, to hunt, to fish, to
hike, to go for supplies. Even
if you don't leave you have to
sleep. While no camp should be left unguarded, with no doors
or locks — there will be nothing between
looters and you.

After dark, the camp and campers
are also vulnerable to the
creatures (four-legged and
two-legged) that roam the night.
Backcountry camps, both in and
outside of established
campgrounds, are vulnerable to
theft and invasion. After
TEOTWAWKI, no area of the
country will be
immune.

At your
bug-out
location,
you
should
have
some
sort of
early
warning
system
that can
alert
you
to a
threat
before
the
threat
reaches
the
threshold
of the
front
door.
It might
be a dog
in the
yard or
the
sound of
a trip
alarm.
In a
tent or
a
shelter,
that
door is
the door
of your
tent and
by then
the
intruder
is
inside
your
personal
space.

Examine
each
campsite
with a
view to
strengths,
weaknesses,
opportunities,
and
threats.
Is the
site
defensible? What
paths
lead
into and
out of
camp? Is
water
close
by? What
distances
must be
traveled
to find
food or
go for
supplies?
Are
there
wild
animals
that
might
make
midnight
raids on
the camp
kitchen?

A
camp
within a
day's
walk of
a town
is
likely
to have
at least
a few
individuals
that
make
their
homes in
the
woods
nearby.
How
likely
would
the camp
be found
by another
group
bugging
out or
even
marauders?

Security is about deterrence. A
four-legged predator is likely
to stay outside the circle of
firelight or a ring of lights.
But a two-legged predator may be
attracted by illumination. A
one-tent camp is more likely to
attract thieves than a camp with
more than one shelter. The
reason? An intruder that chances
on an encampment will have to
turn his back on one tent to
enter the other. One tent may be
empty, but the other might be
occupied by a prepper with a
12-gauge.

When camped away from others,
establish the illusion of more
people in camp. One good way to
do that is to put out extra
chairs around the fire. Think
force multipliers. Use a decoy tent in such
situations. A larger tent might
serve as food and gear storage,
and another tent nearby, perhaps
camouflaged, might be used for
sleeping.

Set up camp with a thought to
where and how the food will be
stored, prepared, and disposed
of. Garbage is the main
attractant for most predators. A
bear can smell bacon grease up
to three miles away. It might be
spooked off by the human smell
and it might not. Coyotes are
prone to prowl the perimeter of
the camp. If the smell of food
is overwhelming, coyotes become
a nuisance. Raccoons and skunks are
even more likely unwanted
guests. Neutralize food smells
by burying garbage or removing
it from camp.
One of
the best
early
warning
systems
is a dog
that
catches
the
scent or
sound of
the
intruder.
Some
dogs are
better
than
others,
but the
fact is
that the
camper
may not
be
accompanied
by a dog
or may
not own
one. How
then can
a
campsite
be
secured?

Establish
a safety
zone in
which
any
prowler
might be
considered
a
threat.
One
hundred
yards
from the
fire
might be
too far,
but a
radius
of 40 to
60 yards
might be
appropriate.
A
perimeter
system
can be
as
elaborate
as a
solar-powered
electric
fence
with a
battery
backup
or as
simple
as a
taut
fishing
line
with
empty
beer or
soda can
rattles
employed
on
likely
ingress
and
egress
paths.

One
360-degree
perimeter
system
uses a
spin-cast
fishing
reel
with
six to
ten pound
fishing
line.
Run the
line
around
camp,
then
secure
the reel
in the
sleeping
area
with the
drag set
low. If
the
perimeter
line is
hit by
an
intruder,
the reel
will
begin to
click as
the line
pulls
out.

Another
option
is a
battery-powered
motion
sensor,
but such
systems
are
likely
to be
tripped
by bats,
squirrels,
and
other
small
varmints
and
might
cause
more
annoyance
than
they are
worth.

We will have some
lightweight, portable perimeter
security systems to be reviewed
and will share that with as
available.